Ball-bearing.



E. OLDPIELD.

BALL BEARING.

APPLICATION FILED OCT 8, 1910 1,035,463. PatentedAug. 13,1912.

ATTORNE! EDWIN OLDFIELD, OF NORWICH, CONNECTICUT.

BALL-BEARING.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 13, 1912.

Application filed October 8, 1910. Serial No. 585,915.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Enwm Onnrrnno, a

I citizen of the United States, residing at means for inserting theballs in that type of ball bearings in which outer and inner rings,(having confronting grooves or raceways), are provided; my aim being toprovide a practically unbroken or uninterrupted raceway for the ballswhen the structure is completed; the construction being such that adefective ball may be readily removed and a perfect ball substitutedtherefor.

My said improvement is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, Figure1- being an end or face view of a ball bearing embodying my presentinvention. Figs. 2 and 3 are transverse sectional views, taken on theline i2-3 of Fig. 1 and Fig. 4 is a detached view of a screw which Iemploy as a partial closure for an opening through which the balls areinserted, one at a time, in the raceway.

In these drawings the letter 11 indicates an outer ring-shaped memberand I) asimilarly shaped member located within, and concentric With,-thcsaid outer ring; said rings being formed with confronting grooves which,together, form an annular raceway for the reception of balls 0.

The outer ring a is cut away ornotche-d at one side, as at a. and theinner ring is similarly notched as at I), each notch being approximatelya half circle and of such size that when the two notches are broughtinto opposition to each other, a circular opening is provided throughwhich a ball may be inserted or removed. As here shown, the bottom ofthe notch 6 does not extend quite to the, bottom ofthe raceway of theinner ring, thus leaying the said raceway continuous and uninterruptedat the point which is engaged by the balls when the bearing is under aload. The notch a. is partially closed, after the raceway has beenfilled with balls, by means of a plug 6 that extends across the raceway,

in the outer ring, the body portion of said plug being cut away, as at eto conform to and complete the otherwise interrupted continuity of thesaid raceivay, andthe plug having a screw end, engageable with athreaded opening in the ring a, whereby the plug is removably secured inposition.

In'the construction of the outer ring (1 I prefer to seat the screw e insaid ring before the raceway is turned, or otherwise cut out, thusproviding in the finished ring a raceway which is practically aseffective and serviceable as if the ring were not cut away to receivethe screw.

In the operation of assemblin the several elementary parts of the ballbearing, (after the balls have been entered in the raceway) the saidballs are adjusted,ns seen in Fig. 1 of the drawings, so that theclosure screw may be'inserted between two of them and thus may beentered in its seat in the ring and screwed home and, when thus seated,the uncut portion of the screw lies below the bottom of the raceway andthus completes said raceway and prevents the escape or deflection of theballs when the ball bearing is in service.

While I have shown and described the closure screw 0 as located in. theouter ring it will be obvious that it would be equally effective,practical. and convenient if located in the inner ring.

Having thus described my invention I claim as new and wish to secure byLetters Patent In a ball bearing, the combination of an outer and aninner ring having confronting raceways and complemental side notchescommunicating with said raceways for the insertion of balls into thelatter, one of said rings having a threaded aperture, and a closure plugpassing through one of said notches and being provided with a screw endengaging said threaded aperture, the plug bein transversely cut awayintermediate of t e length thereof to register with and complete saidraceway.

EDWIN OLDFIELD.

Witnesses:

FRANK H. ALLEN, Mannnmn D. Rrrcrnn.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents.

Washington, D. G."

